PHOENIX (AZFamily)<\/b> \u2014 State prison officials announced on Tuesday the execution date for the man who murdered a west Phoenix family more than three decades ago.<\/p>\n
The Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry said a warrant of execution was issued on Tuesday for Richard Djerf, who will be put to death on Friday, Oct. 17. The method will be lethal injection.<\/p>\n
In September 1993, Djerf used a ruse to enter a house and took the family hostag<\/a>e in an act of revenge against a coworker, Albert Luna. Over several hours, he brutally murdered Luna\u2019s mother, Patricia, his dad, Albert Luna Sr., his 5-year-old brother Damien, and his 17-year-old sister Rochelle, whom he also raped. <\/p>\n Before leaving the scene, Djerf tried to set the home on fire. Albert Jr. later found his family\u2019s bodies and his girlfriend called 911.<\/p>\n Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell called Djerf\u2019s actions \u201cpure evil.\u201d<\/p>\n Djerf pleaded guilty to four counts of first-degree murder in 1995 and was later sentenced to death. The Arizona Supreme Court affirmed his conviction in May 1998.<\/p>\n In a sit-down interview with Arizona\u2019s Family anchor Scott Pasmore<\/a> in 1995, Djerf expressed remorse for his actions.<\/p>\n \u201cAre you sorry for what you did?\u201d asked Pasmore.<\/p>\n \u201cAbsolutely. I screwed up a lot of lives,\u201d replied Djerf.<\/p>\n Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes started the process of confirming an execution date<\/a> back in May. She filed a warrant of execution with the courts late last month<\/a>.<\/p>\n As of Aug. 19, there are 108 inmates on Arizona\u2019s death row<\/a>.<\/p>\n See a spelling or grammatical error in our story? Please click here to report it<\/a>.<\/p>\n